I hope

I hope that Obama reacts in a similar fashion.
http://news.bbc.co.uk/2/hi/uk_news/politics/7878418.stm?lss

Donkeys and pink elephants

I think that I have found one of the bigger roadblocks between democrats and republicans. Every time I hear a rep talk of trying to talk to a dem about politics, they say the same thing. You can't get a word in edgewise and even if you do, they won't listen to you. It's their way and that's it. There isn't even a highway. Typically, dems are so hard up on their ideas that they cannot listen. I tend to agree with this. However, I think it applies to reps too. They are just quieter and more "ethical" about it.

Alright, let's look at the mortgage limit. It was at 10 and now it's at 4. I'm not sure who oversees that (I'd guess the FED, but IDK). So let's say we have a businessman. He is an investor. For all practical purposes, that is all he does (for our example). He has 200 properties currently. He has 70 mortgages and owns 130 of the properties out right. Say he has $250,000 in cash and liquid assets. That isn't enough to buy a house outright. However, that is enough to put down several down payments and get a solid start on a mortgage (or three).

Being in the real estate business (read: working in a RE office as I'm not a broker), I keep hearing about how this is such a buyer's market. Rates are low on a historic level; equity is low vs likely future values; there are tons of properties being listed and put into the for sale databases/being foreclosed.

Now, put that cap on at 4. You can no longer get ANY financing for even well leveraged and backed projects. Your credit score is 912? Nope. You can back the project with 75% capital? Nope. This has stopped many development projects. You are this guy. What do you do? You can't invest in the most tangible investment in existence. The stock markets are a bit sketchy.

I look for venture capital opportunities. I'm looking for people similar to myself who want to start businesses that provide essentials to living that have solid business foundations. I'm looking at people looking to start a Costco, a grocery store, a Sam's. If I can help start one of these businesses with $150,000 of my cash/etc and some partners, I will have made a solid investment that creates a ton of jobs. Why not a $20k tax credit to business that are expanding and growing or even a new business! I'm sure there are more than a few small businesses that are looking to get off of the ground.

What would make it easier for me? People need to live. They need essentials: housing, food, a job. They will find ways to have fun past that. It is not my concern. I would like to see things loosened up for people looking to make things happen for these three priorities. Mr Obama, ease regulation for these people. Please!

I just saw an ad the other night on the internet somewhere. I think it was an Allstate ad. This company started in 1931. Who can say that? They have focused on "the basics." Our economy has been so bloated with saturated fatty acids like the formalities of advertising and making things bigger and more *fill in the blank*. Let's look at making milk cheaper; flour; beef. Let's get back to basics.

Do you see what I did there? I looked at the problem from a citizen's perspective. I looked at a possible solution. I talked it out. I really haven't read much about it all (other than some stuff to become educated enough to write the previous couple of posts). I didn't say that this group had got it right and this group had it wrong. There was no dem or rep. I took a problem that has been talked about and just thought things out. People seem to judge too much and too often. Please stop.

side note: The democrats seem to be more educated about things, but I'm not sure which is more focused on actually solving the problem(s); if either group is.

another side note: a good link I just found (http://www.fixhousingfirst.com/the-issues/index.php)

Democrats are messing it up too

Even though Bush is no longer our fearless leader and the republicans are basically powerless, the democrats are making a bad situation worse.

I was really happy to hear about the first time home buyer credit of up to $15k. I was not happy with the limitation of financing past 4 houses. There are plenty of wealthy people who have cash on hand. Guess what these people want to do? They want to buy real estate!!! With interest rates where they are, people are wanting to exploit the buyers market that we find ourselves in. Inside the changes that are happening, one of them is a limitation on how many mortgages you can have. The limit WAS 10. It is now 4. What does this mean? Even the people with cash cannot get financing. The banks NEED to get back to lending. That is how they make their income; from interest off of loans. What is the ideal client? The ideal client is the investor who is well backed and leveraged with cash on hand. This is a huge mistake in my humble opinion.
I'm glad that George W Bush is out of office. He made a lot of mistakes. But I see some big mistakes being made since then. *sigh*

The best thing we can do as a country (a bit long)

The United States loves to help other countries. We've spewed billions into foreign aid to countries that are stupid poor. Columbia, Tanzania, South Africa, etc. We have drained our economy so much with the war in Iraq, supporting illegal immigrants' kids for life, and waste still more by funneling into the black hole some people call the "Federal Government."
I'd like to share my thoughts.
As a libertarian, my philosophy is often skipped over for the more popular "right or left" syndrome. The truth of the matter is, everyone has parts of both left and right in their thoughts. So, on to point!
Foreign policy! There is a big world out there! Lots of people are working and building and living in very beautiful places. Some people live in huts, some in bars, still more live in poverty. The poverty line in the United States is pretty high compared to other countries. Last time I checked, it was somewhere around $12,000 a year as income. $12k won't go very far here. That's $1,000 per month! However, $12k will go miles in places like China, Argentina, and any third-world country. What you give up for that will be more costly than you might imagine though. To give you an example, $12k in China would be something like $150,000 here. That's a good income. So, we have things VERY well off here.
We keep on giving money to these countries... as a federal government! I have a question to any Chinese citizen: What have western companies done for your town? The answer might surprise you. They bring jobs. They bring incomes. They bring advancements to society. "Isn't that the government's job?" I hear that all too often. The answer? NO! It is not the government's job to give you everything you want. The government is to encourage economic growth, not give you a job. Companies can give you a job. That is their job - to make money. The government is to make that easier to do. I'm not sure how else I can say it.
So, leave the companies to give jobs. What SHOULD the government do? The government SHOULD be a good steward and stop wasting it's resources. It SHOULD spend money on things like debt. I can personally vouch that having debt is not a good thing. Debt is like disease. Many people CAN get rid of it, but it is very difficult. Some people never recover, because they don't try. It takes counsel (maybe from a doctor/financial adviser), elbow grease to figure things out, and plain old hard work to get things done.
The government SHOULD focus on providing the BEST education to our citizens. I'm not a fan of the Dept of Education. If teachers want a union, they will organize one. For now, re-write the purpose of the DOE to evaluate where EVERY school in north America and the world is making progress. Not just teaching the same stuff the same way it has for 20 years. Where are teachers finding newer and more effective ways of teaching? What works? What doesn't? Do private schools educate people better than public? If so, why not give everyone the voucher? Encourage competition among teachers! Encourage schools to go after the best teachers and to pay them well! I would bet that most teachers would love a new job offer out of the blue just because they did a good job the year before. If public schools are better, find the leaks! Where are they spewing money? Plug those leaks! Reward progress! Reward consistent efficiency!
I'm a big fan of working on our economy and I believe that education comes first in this endeavor. I believe that education has some of the bigger leaks in our society too, but I may save that for another blog.
What about the little guys? What about local businesses? Let's take them and encourage them to focus on hiring people who are not educated! People who have a high school diploma or less can work simple jobs! They can make those jobs better. Let's encourage small business owners to be teachers and mentors. Maybe even expand their business overseas to "help" foreigners. That can be our version of foreign aid. They can grow to be bigger companies. (I'm sure the owner will love the word "bigger!") This isn't taking jobs and income from our country. This is encouraging so much growth that the companies see foreign markets as investment opportunities. They WANT other countries to grow too! Just imagine what the communist Chinese government would say if a company told them that their GDP was about to balloon by $300 billion! China would fling it's doors open to western society so fast that we wouldn't be able to expand fast enough! What about Africa? There are thousands, maybe millions that just want a home again. They will work at Lowe's and Wal-Mart and appreciate the opportunity. Companies will jump at the chance.
Alright, so long rant! To knock it down, I believe that if we focus on education in schools and businesses, the economy shall grow. Then a strong economy will expand through borders into countries where marginal growth can begin.

uhm, no?

So I read today that Colorado State University's President Larry Penley is resigning. There are lots of yadda yaddas and blah blahs, but one of the points really gets to me. As part of his "severance" or whatever, he is going to continue receiving his salary for an ENTIRE year! His salary is $389,000! As an alumni, this makes me rather livid. I've seen some of the current college students and nobody needs to be making that for a year after they leave a post.
'Most' people try to build up something of a savings that we call an "emergency fund." This fund is for when we lose our job and need to pay bills. This is not right at all. This should be 3 months just like the rest of us.

Political Philosophy

I had a cool experience listening to a rant from a weird guy from Canadia the other day. It helped me define some of my own political views. It was funny listening to him talk, but at the same time it was refreshing to hear some rationale behind his, in some cases VERY, different views on how to deal with the system and fixing it.

It seems to me like there are a few fundamental things that each society needs from some form of government. It is in the way that you would approach those needs and build solutions and applications for your society that really define your political views.
From my view, the fundamentals are as follows...
Freedoms that are decided by the citizens as they believe that they deserve.
Some sort of protection from outside invaders, e.g. pirates, dictators, other countries that think they need to own your country (UK, France, China come to mind).
A currency that is common for the country as a whole and not 50 bazillion different currencies.
And last but not least is a way to support the economy and tax it within reason, e.g. health care, education, grants, etc.

The way that you look at implementing those things (and I probably missed something) into a culture are what make up political philosophies.